Windmill



(No Model.) 8 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. A. R. 82; C. B. DEMPSTER,

WINDMILL. No. 890,009. Patented Sept. 25, 1888.

u. FUEIIS Mvumn m Washingiw. n.c.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

A. R. & e. B. D EMPSTEPJ.

' WINDMILL.

No. 390,009. Patented Sept. 25, 1888 Inverdon';

I UNITED Srarss ATENT UFFICE.

ALEXANDER R. DEMPSTER AND CHARLES E. DEMPSTER, OF BEATRICE, NEBRASKA.

WlNDMlLL...

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 390,009, datedSeptember 25, 1888.

Application filed July 26, 1887. Serial No. 245,310. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that we, ALEXANDER, R. DEMP- STER and CHARLES B. DEMPSTER,of Beatrice, in the county of Gage and State of Nebraska, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Windmills; and we do herebydeclare that the following is a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to theletters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

This invention relates to that class of solid wheel windmills in whichthe wheel is constructed to swing automatically more or less out of thewind and to thereby adjust itself to the force of the latter.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described, and pointedout in the appended claims.

The invention may be more readily understood by reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which I Figure l is a side view oftheprincipal working parts of a mill constructed in accordance with ourinvention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a verticalcross-section taken upon line no a: of Fig. 2, looking toward thewind-wheel. Fig. 4. is a detail sectional view taken upon the verticalplane indicated by the line y y of Fig.2. Fig. 5 is a fragmentary planview of the mill, illustrating the changed position of the wind-vane.

As shown in said drawings, A is the turntable,which is attached to thetop of a hollow rotating shaft, A, which latter is mounted in suitablebearings in the windmill-tower in a familiar manner.

Upon the top of the turn-table A bearings a and a are provided for thehorizontal wheelshaft B, theaxis ofthe wheel being located slightly atone side of the vertical axis of the turn-table, so that the pressure ofthe wind upon the wheel will tend to rotate the latter, so as to bringit edgewisc to the wind in a wellknown manner.

A vertical cylindric rod or stake, O, is fixed in the turn-table, andextends upwardly therefrom to form a support for a rotating vane, D. Thesaid rod 0 is located upon the turn-table at a point somewhatin the rearof its axis and at some distance laterally therefrom, these parts beingarranged in a manner heretofore common and well known.

D is the wind-vanc,which is pivoted to the stake O by bearings d d. Saidbearings are made to rotate freely and also to slide vertically uponsaid stake. The rotary motion of the vane on its pivot is limited whenit is turned to throw the wheel out of the wind by an arm or bracket,a", bolted to the turn-table, and in the opposite direction by a chainor coupled rods, a

The vane D is supported and given vertical movement by means of anannular casting or sleeve, 0', surrounding the lower part of the stakeO, and provided with a cam shaped upper edge made of inclined or spiralform, and engaging the lower bearing, (1, of the vane in such mannerthat when the turn-table is swung around to bring the wheel into thewind the vane will be lifted, and when the force is withdrawn the weightof the vane will cause the turn-table to rotate back to its formerposition, these parts being constructed and arranged to operate in thesame manner as the similar parts shown in a prior patent, No. 324,092,granted to us upon the 11th day of August, 1885.

The turn-table is rotated in a direction to bring the wheel into thewind, (or, in other words,with its flat face to the wind,) in oppositionto the tendency of the weight of the vane acting upon the inclinedsupport of the latter to throw the wheel out of the wind, by means ofachain or cable, E, which is attached to the extremity of a rigid arm, D,which is rigidly attached to the vane and extends forward from the axisto the latter, or in a direction from said axis opposite to that inwhich the vane extends.

In the said prior patent a chain is shown which operates in the samemanner and for the same purpose as the chain E. In the device shown inthe said patent, however, the chain is arranged to pass from the end ofthe arm directly to a guidepulley upon the table, and thence overanother gnidepulley downwardly to theground. The mill herein shownembraces a brake device controlled by the said chain and constructed toautomatically check the motion of the wind-wheel when the latter isthrown edgewise to the wind by the slackening of the chain. Such brakedevice as herein shown is made as follows:

F isa vertically-arranged brake-lever,\vhich is pivoted atf to theturn-table at a point adjacent to the wind-wheel, and is provided with abearing-surface or brake-shoe, f, arranged to act against abearing-ring, G, which is attached to the wind-wheel concentrically withthe shaft of the latter, preferably by being bolted to the arms thereofin the manner shown in the drawings. Upon the upper part of saidbrake-lever is mounted a pulley, F. The chain or cable E,which isattached to the arm D, passes from the said arm over the said pulley F,and thence over a guide-pulley, H, which is located adjacent to thehollow shaft A, and is so arranged as to guide the chain downwardlythrough the said hollow shaft.

The brake-lever F may be thrown toward and held in contact with thebearing G upon the wheel by any suitablyarranged spring, ap plied tomore the brake-lever in the manner described. In the particularconstruction herein illustrated a coiled spring, K, is employed for thispurpose. Said spring K is placed about a rod, K, which is secured at oneendin a lug or projection, A located upon the turn-table at a pointbetween the lever and the wind wheel, and is extended through a slot, f,in the brake-lever F, the spring K being placed between a head or nut,It, upon the said rod K and the rear surface of the brakelever, or thatremote from the wheel, so that said spring tends to throw the free orupperend ofthelever toward the bearingring. The head It upon the rod Kis preferably screw-th rcadcd and adapted to engage a screw-thread uponthe rod in order to enable the pressure of the spring to be adj ustcdwhen desired. WVhen in this construction the chain is drawn clownwardlyto bring the wind-vane parallel with the wind'wheel shaft and to therebyswing the wheel into the wind, the brake will be pulled back fromengagement with the wheel and the latter allowed to turn freely. XVhen,however, the chain is released and the vane thereby allowed to swingabout its pivot and the turntable to swing around to bring the wheeledgewise-to the wind, the brake will be released and will act upon thewheel and hold the latter from turning.

In windmills of the general character described, in which the wind-vaneand the turntable are held in position to keep the wheel in the wind bya chain, an automatically acting regulating or controlling device orgovernor has heretofore been provided by connect-ing with the lower endof the chain a weight or weights adapted to hold the wheel-face to thewind in ordinary winds, but to yield upwardly and allow the wheel toswing more or less out of the wind as the latter increases in force. Thepresent invention embraces a spring connected with the chain toyieldingly hold the wheel in the wind, such spring being capable of useeither with or without a weight, as will hereinafter more fully appear.

In the particular construction of the regulating devices shown in thedrawings the chain E is attached at a convenient height above the groundto a lever, I, which lever is pivoted to a convenient part of the frameor tower. The free end of the lever I is connected with a second lever,J, preferably by means of a rod or chain, t, and the said lever J isprovided with an adjustable weight, J, which weight is movablelongitudinally upon the lever, whereby the resistance to the movement ofthe wheel out of the wind may be varied in the same manner as by theemployment of the similar weight shown in said prior patent. As shown insaid patent, however, a series of weights are attached to said lever insuch manner as to commonly rest upon a suitable support, and saidweights are lifted successively as the wheel turns away from the wind,soas to maintain a constantly'increasing force, acting to retard the wheelwhen moving in thatdirection. As herein shown, a spring is locatedbetween the lever J and the adjacent stationary part of c the mill, saidspring acting with a continually increasingresistance to the movement ofthe lever as the latter is lifted by the action of the chain. In theparticular construction illustrated the said spring and its connectionsare made as follows:

M is a rod, which is connected at its upper end with the lever J, and isprovided at its lower end with a head, in.

Mis a spiral spring, which is placed around the rod M between the headat and the upper end wall of a tubular casing, MP, in which tubulareasing the said rod and disk are constructed to slide. The lower endofsaid casing M" is pivoted to a bracket, M, attached to the floor or asuitable support. The lever J is desirably provided with several holesin either of which the pivot connecting the rod M thereto may besecured, so that the spring may act with greater or less force upon thele ver, as desired.

When the mill is running, the brake F is held free from the wheel andthe vane parallel with the wind-wheel shaft by the connection of thechain with the weighted lever J. The wheel may be stopped bydisconnecting the chain E from the lever I, or by detaching the saidlever I from the lever J, or by lifting the lever J and fastening it inan elevated position. In either case the wheel will turn out of the windand remain inoperative, while at the same time the brake will bereleased and thrown against the wheel by the spring which actuates it.

As a further and special improvement in windmills of the character aboveset forth, we have provided the brake-lever F with an upwardprolongation or arm, F which is conneeted by means of a chain, L, withan arm, D attached to the upper hearing, (I, of the vane at right angleswith the latter. The

chain L is made of such length that when the wheel is face to the windand the brake-lever disengaged from the wheel said chain will be taut,so that the movement of the free end of the brake-lever toward thebearing-ring G will immediately throw the vane into position to swingthe wheel out of the wind. By this construction will beiusured theprompt swinging of the vane, so as to throw the wheel quickly out of thewind at the time the chain is released.

In a windmill operating in the general manner described the wind-wheelshaft may have operative connection with the plunger-rod by any suitableconnecting devices. As illus trated in the accompanying drawings, thecrank-shaft B is connected to the plunger-rod O by means of anoscillating lever, O, which is pivotally connected at one end with theturntable, and is connected with the crank of the shaft by means of apitman, 0'.

As a further improvement in windmills,we have provided in the mill shownmeans for holding the vane locked against the turn-table when thewind-wheel is swung out of or edgewise to the wind, thus preventing thewindwheel from jerking or slamming in unsteady or whirling winds. Saiddevice comprises a detent or catch adapted for connecting the wind-vanewith the turn-table when the wheel is outofthe wind, together with meanswhereby the said detent or catch may be actuated from the ground. In theparticular embodiment of this part of the invention shown in theaccompanying drawings, I is a detent-lever, which is pivoted to the vanenear the lower part of the latter, and is provided with a hooked end,

p, constructed to engage an upwardly-projecting part or lug, Q, upon thetop of the turntable. Near the free end of the arm D of the vane islocated a lever, B, which is pivoted at its ends to the arm, andconnected at its upper end with the detent-lever P by means of a rod,1'. The rope or chain E, by which the wheel is turned inthe wind, is inthis instance, instead of being attached directly to the arm D, securedto the inner end of the lever B, or that nearest the turn-table. Thedetent-lever P is held by means of a spring, P, in position for its hookto engage the projection Q, so that when the rope E is released and theturn-table allowed to swing about its pivot the detent-lever will (whenthe vane is parallel with the face of the wheel) engage the projectionand remain engaged therewith during the time the wheel is out ofoperation.

When, however, the rope or chain E is drawn downwardly for pulling thewheel into the wind, the rope will act first to draw the inner end ofthe lever R in a direction to release the hook of the detentlever fromthe projection Q. After the release of the vane is accomplished thechain is pulled down until the vane is brought parallel with the wheelaxis.

It is entirely obvious that the catch or connection between the vane andthe turn-table may be located otherwise than in the particular placeshown, and that means for disconnecting the parts may be attached andoperated in a different manner than herein illustrated. The accompanyingbroad claim upon the said catch or detent therefor is not limited to theparticular means shown for actuating the catch or detent onto the exactconstruction herein illustrated in said catch or detent.

One of the principal features of novelty in our invention is comprisedin a construction embracing a brake applied to control the motion of thewind-wheel and means for actuating the brake, whereby the brake may beapplied when the wind-wheel is thrown out of the wind. As far as thisbroad feature of the invention is concerned, the brake may either beoperated automatically, so that it will be applied to the wheel in theact of turning the wheel out of the wind, as occurs in the constructionshown, by the action of the chain which operates both the vane and thebrake, or by a device which is independent of the other operative partsof the apparatus.

Inasmuch as an automatically-acting brake is novel and has importantadvantages in pointof convenience and economy, such antomatically-actingbrake is herein broadly claimed as part of our invention, without 1estriction to the exact mechanism shown in the brake itself or in thedevices for actuating itas, for instance, the brake may be arranged toact against some rotating part connected and turning with the wheelother than the ring G shown.

The use, in connection with a chain or rope for drawing the wheel intothe wind, of a spring holding the chain or rope yieldingly, so that thewheel may swing more or less out of the wind, according to the force ofthe latter, is also new with'us, and herein broadly claimed, withoutrestriction to its use in connection with levers or a weight or weights.

We claim as our invention- 1. The combination, with a turn-table and awind-wheel and vane mounted thereon, of a brake arranged to act u p011 arotating part connected with the wind-wheel, a spring applied to throwthe brake into operative position, and means for holding the brake freefrom the said rotating part, constructed to release the brake when thewheel is thrown out of the wind, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with a turntable and a wind-wheel and vane mountedthereon, of

.a brake constructed to act upon a rotating part connected with thewind-wheel, a spring applied to throw the brake into engagement with thesaid rotating part, and a chain connected with the vane and thebrake,'whereby the wheel may be drawn and held out of the wind and thebrake released from the wind wheel, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a turntable, a wind-wheel, and a vane pivotedto the turm table, of a brake mounted upon the turntable and acting upona rotating part connected with the wind-wheel, a pulley connected withsaid brake, a spring-applied to throw the brake into contact with thewind-wheel, and a chain connected with the vane and passing around thesaid pulley, substantially as de scribed.

t. The combination, with a turn-table, a wind-wheel mounted thereon, anda vane pivoted to said turn-table, of a brake'levcr pivoted to theturn-talivle and actingnpon a rotating part connected with thewind-whcel. a chain connected with the vane and passing over a pulleyupon the said brakelever, means connected with said chain for holdingthe vane in position to bring the wheel face to the wind, a springapplied to the brake-lever to throw the latter toward the said rotatingpart con nected with the wind-wheel, and a chain or rod connecting thesaid brake-lever with an arm upon the vane, whereby,when the brakeleveris thrown toward the windwheel, the vane will be carried into positionto throw the wheel out of the wind, substantially as do scribed.

5. The combination, with a turntable and a wind-wheel and vane mountedthereon, of a brake mounted upon the turn-table and constructed to actupon a rotating part connected with the windwheel, a spring foractuating said brake, a gulley upon the brake, aspringcatch upon thevane engaging a projection upon the turn-table, and a chain connectedwith the vane and passing around said pulley upon the brake, said chainbeing also connected with the spring catch substantially as described.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our invention we affix oursignatures in pres ence of two witnesses.

ALEXANDER R. DEMPSTE't. CHARLES B. DEM'JS'PER. \Vitnesses:

CHARLES E. Wni'rn, JOHN Hnunnason.

